Written last year by an assistant city
attorney, the legal opinion is said to argue that a Church Street
Marketplace no-trespass ordinance does not violate rights guaranteed
under the U.S. Constitution.

The city council voted 8-5 at its June
10 meeting against releasing the memo. Councilors in the majority
said the document should be treated as confidential on the grounds of
attorney-client privilege. In this instance, the city council was
said to be the client of the city attorney.

But at least three councilors who voted
in favor of keeping the memo secret have indicated they will change
their votes when the issue comes before the council again this
evening. Republican Paul Decelles (Ward 7), Democrat Tom Ayres (Ward 7) and Independent
Karen Paul (Ward 6) say they will join the five Progressive-aligned councilors
in supporting release of the document.

Such a turnaround would come as an
embarrassment to the administration of Mayor Miro Weinberger. While the mayor has repeatedly pledged to conduct city business in a
"transparent" manner, the city attorney's office had defended the secrecy of the memo.
It appears that at least a few of his allies on the city council are
now poised to abandon Weinberger on this issue. And if the council
does vote to release the memo, the public will learn whether there
are embarrassing aspects of it that led the administration to insist
it remain secret.

Paul and Ayres stated their respective
shift of positions following a press conference held this morning on
the Marketplace by councilors and local attorneys who claim the
no-trespass ordinance is unconstitutional. Decelles had previously
announced his intention to change his vote of two weeks ago.

Calling the council's approval of the
ordinance "a tragedy," private attorney Jared Carter
revealed today that 22 individuals have been cited under the
no-trespass measure since it took effect at the beginning of May.
Some have been banned from the Marketplace for 30 days for having
allegedly violated the ordinance on two occasions. Most of those
cited have been forbidden by police to return to the Marketplace for
a 24-hour period.

"We have very grave concerns over
how in practice this is being enforced," said attorney John
Franco (pictured). He argued today and in a recent written opinion drafted at
the request of Progressive councilors that the ordinance violates the
Constitution's due-process guarantees. Franco says individuals are
being banished from the Marketplace before they have been found
guilty of any offense. He also objects to the ordinance's provision
specifying that appeals of banning orders are to be made to a Marketplace-appointed panel, which he describes as "extrajudicial."

None of those cited under the ordinance
have yet filed an appeal, Carter said.